Vehicle door lock

ABSTRACT

Motor-vehicle door lock ( 1 ) which can be actuated by means of an interior handle and an exterior handle, wherein the exterior handle acts on a trigger ( 15 ), actuation of which triggers a catch ( 9 ) to retain a rotary latch ( 10 ) in an unlocked position of the lock, and is inactive in a locked position and in a safeguarding position. The interior handle ( 30 ) acts on a transmission lever ( 14 ) which triggers the catch ( 9 ) in the unlocked position and the locked position, and is inactive in the safeguarding position. The transmission lever ( 14 ) has a switching member ( 26 ) wherein in the locked position, initial actuation of the interior handle ( 30 ) switches over the switching member ( 26 ) from the inoperative position into the operative position, and switches over the lock ( 1 ) into the unlocked position.

The invention relates to a motor-vehicle door lock which can be actuatedby means of an interior handle and an exterior handle, it being the casethat the exterior handle acts on a trigger, actuation of which triggersa catch, which retains a rotary latch, in an unlocked position of thelock and is inactive in a locked position and in a safeguardingposition, and that the interior handle acts on a transmission lever,actuation of which triggers the catch in the unlocked position and inthe locked position and is inactive in the safeguarding position.

Such a motor-vehicle door lock is known from DE 198 53 160 A1, it beingpossible, once the motor-vehicle door has been closed and locked, forthe safeguarding position to be brought about by means of an actuatingmember, so that unlocking by means of the interior handle is notpossible.

It is an object of the invention for the construction of a motor-vehicledoor lock of the generic type to be simplified and rendered moreadvantageous in control terms.

This object is achieved first and foremost in the case of amotor-vehicle door lock having the features of Claim 1, this being basedon the fact that the transmission lever has a switching member which, inthe unlocked position, assumes an operative position, which allowstransmission of movement to the catch, and, in the locked position andin the safeguarding position, assumes an inoperative position, whichrenders the transmission lever inactive, it being the case that, in thelocked position, initial actuation of the interior handle switches overthe switching member from the inoperative position into the operativeposition and switches over the lock into the unlocked position.

The subject matters of the rest of the claims are explained hereinbelowwith reference to the subject matter of Claim 1, but may also beimportant in respect of their independent wording.

Such a configuration provides a motor-vehicle door lock of the type inquestion which is distinguished by a structurally advantageousconfiguration. The components for the motor-vehicle door lock arelimited to a minimum. There are also control-related advantages. Whenthe motor vehicle is left, the lock can be moved into a safeguardingposition, for example, via key-controlled radio actuation. Thissafeguarding position is such that both the trigger, which is associatedwith the exterior handle, and the transmission lever, which isassociated with the interior handle, are inactive. This is because, whenthe safeguarding position is brought about, the switching member of thetransmission lever passes into the inoperative position, so that, uponactuation of the interior handle, the transmission lever is indeedpivoted, but the catch, which secures the rotary latch, is nottriggered. It is, however, possible, if for example someone is leftbehind in the motor vehicle, to activate exclusively the locked positionof the lock. It is also the case here that the switching member stillremains in an inoperative position, which renders the transmission leverinactive. This inoperative position is such that initial actuation ofthe interior handle by the person remaining in the motor vehicleswitches over the switching member from this inoperative position intothe operative position. At the same time, the lock is also changed overinto the unlocked position. It is thus possible for the lock to beopened both by the exterior handle and, upon the second actuation, bythe interior handle as well. The procedure here, in a straightforwardmanner in production terms, is such that the trigger is articulated in arotatable manner on a safeguarding lever which can be pivoted, by meansof a first actuating motor, between a position which is associated withthe unlocked position of the lock and a position which is associatedwith the locked position of the lock. The safeguarding lever can thus bemoved into two positions by means of the first actuating motor. If thisposition is the one which is associated with the unlocked position ofthe lock, then the trigger, which is controlled by the exterior handle,is inactive. It is only in the other position, which is associated withthe unlocked position of the lock, that the trigger causes the lockedposition of the catch in relation to the rotary latch to be eliminated.Moreover, it is possible for the trigger already to be actuated and, forexample, retained prior to the safeguarding lever being displaced out ofthe position which is associated with the unlocked position of the lock.The catch is then triggered when the safeguarding lever is driven back,by means of the first actuating motor, into the position which isassociated with the unlocked position of the lock. Incorrect actuationof the lock is thus reduced to a minimum. Furthermore, it is anadvantageous feature of the invention that the switching member isformed as a lever, in particular angled lever, which is disposed at theend of the two-armed transmission lever, has a control member, which isdriven by a second actuating motor, acting on one arm and has its secondarm acting, in particular via a lever, on the catch. Via this secondactuating motor, the switching member can be transferred into theinoperative position by means of the control member. The resultingsafeguarding position can be brought about, for example, via thekey-based radio control or also, during travel, in a speed-dependentmanner. Also noteworthy is the fact that a control protrusion formed bythe second arm, in the operative position, acts on the lever uponactuation of the interior handle, and a control cam, which is formed bythe first arm of the switching member, with the control memberdisengaged in the inoperative position, acts on the safeguarding leverupon initial actuation of the interior handle in order to pivot thesafeguarding lever into the position which is associated with theunlocked position and, with the control member held in engagement, inorder to move the control cam past the safeguarding lever upon actuationof the interior handle. The switching member may thus be controlled suchthat, on the one hand, it interacts with the safeguarding lever and, onthe other hand, following actuation of the control member, it can movepast the safeguarding lever. In order to realize this in astraightforward manner, the control cam slides along a control rib ofthe safeguarding lever in the pivoted-back position of the controlmember, which is formed as a lever, and, with the control member pivotedforward, a drive protrusion of the switching member slides along acontrol curve of the same. In order for it to be possible to carry outkey-dependent opening of the lock in the safeguarding position and withthe control member pivoted and the switching member moved into theinoperative position, the second actuating member acts on the controlmember by way of a non-blocking worm drive. Return displacement of thesame is thus possible. Furthermore, it is also possible for the lock tobe used for rear motor-vehicle doors and to be provided with childprooflocking there. The lock is then additionally distinguished by achildproof-locking position, in which, starting from the lockedposition, the lock can be displaced into the unlocked position byinitial actuation of the interior handle, but second actuation of theinterior handle is inactive. In order for it to be possible to realizethis in a straightforward manner, in the childproof-locking position,the second arm of the switching member is moved past the lever and/orthe catch upon actuation of the interior handle. Finally, in order toachieve a disruption-free locking function, it is also provided that thefirst actuating motor acts on the safeguarding lever by way of a wormdrive which, in its two end positions, allows the safeguarding lever tobe pivoted freely, the safeguarding lever being forced by torques in thedirection of the respective end position upon trigger actuation. Thefree pivoting action of the safeguarding lever can be produced, forexample, by a corresponding radial-slot arrangement of the driving worm,the slot width corresponding approximately to the thickness of thesafeguarding lever in order that, in a corresponding rotary position ofthe worm, the safeguarding lever can pivot through.

A schematically illustrated exemplary embodiment of the invention isexplained hereinbelow with reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a view of the lock with the door pulled shut and the matinglocking part arrested by the rotary latch,

FIG. 2 shows a view of FIG. 1 rotated through 90°,

FIG. 3 shows an illustration solely of the lock components whichinteract with the exterior handle (not illustrated), the motor-vehicledoor merely having been closed, that is to say pulled shut,

FIG. 4 shows an illustration corresponding to FIG. 3, but with thetrigger displaced by the exterior handle and the lock opened via thistrigger,

FIG. 5 shows an illustration which is comparable to FIG. 3, thesafeguarding lever, which bearingly mounts the trigger, having beenpivoted, by means of the first actuating motor, into the position whichcorresponds to the locked position,

FIG. 6 shows the follow-up illustration to FIG. 5, to be precise withthe trigger pivoted by the exterior handle, the trigger being inactiveand thus not causing the catch to be triggered,

FIG. 7 shows the follow-up illustration to FIG. 6, although, in contrastto the latter, the safeguarding lever has been pivoted, via theactuating motor, into the position which corresponds to the unlockedposition, with the catch being triggered and the rotary latch beingreleased in the process,

FIG. 8 shows an illustration solely of the lock components whichinteract with the interior handle, the motor-vehicle door having beenclosed and the interior handle not having been actuated,

FIG. 9 shows the side view, rotated through 90°, corresponding to FIG.8,

FIG. 10 shows an illustration like FIG. 8, but with the interior handleactuated and the lock open,

FIG. 11 shows the side view, rotated through 90°, of FIG. 10,

FIG. 12 shows an illustration which is comparable to FIG. 8, although,in relation to the latter, the switching member has been moved, via thecontrol member, into the inoperative position, the safeguarding positionof the lock being realized in the process,

FIG. 13 shows an illustration which is comparable to FIG. 12, to beprecise with the interior handle displaced and the inactive transmissionlever pivoted in the process,

FIG. 14 shows an illustration like FIG. 12, but with the control memberdisengaged,

FIG. 15 shows the follow-up illustration to FIG. 14, to be precise withthe interior handle actuated and the transmission lever displaced, thelatter pivoting the safeguarding lever, during the first displacement,into the position which corresponds to the unlocked position,

FIG. 16 shows the follow-up illustration to FIG. 15, to be precise oncereturn displacement has taken place and the switching member has beenrestored, and

FIG. 17 shows the follow-up illustration to FIG. 16 following the secondactuation of the interior handle.

The motor-vehicle door lock, which is designated overall by the numeral1, has a cross-sectionally U-shaped housing 2. Housing side walls 4, 5are angled from the housing base plate 3. An introduction opening 6 fora mating locking part 7 on the door frame opens out into the housingside wall 4. This means that the housing 2 is secured at a suitablelocation of a motor-vehicle door (not illustrated).

Beneath the introduction opening 6, the housing base plate 3 carries acatch spindle 8, about which a catch 9 is arranged in a pivotablemanner. This catch is forced in the direction of a rotary latch 10 by acatch spring (not illustrated). The rotary latch is mounted about abase-plate spindle 11. A spring (not illustrated) forces the rotarylatch 10 in the opening direction, that is to say, according to theexemplary embodiment illustrated, in the clockwise direction. In theposition in which the mating locking part 7 is arrested, the catch 9ensures that the rotary latch rotates back into the open position.

The catch 9, which is of single-armed configuration, carries a drive pin12, which interacts with one lever arm 13′ of a V-shaped lever 13. Theother lever arm 13″ of the latter, for its part, interacts with atransmission lever 14 and with a trigger 15. The trigger 15 isarticulated in a rotatable manner on a pin 16 of a safeguarding lever17. The latter is mounted, for its part, about a pin 18 of the baseplate 3. The safeguarding lever 17 is the carrier of a worm-wheelsegment 19, which interacts with a driving worm 20. The latter can bedriven, via gearwheels, by means of a first actuating motor 21. This isan actuating motor 21, the direction of rotation of which can beswitched over. FIGS. 1 and 3 illustrate that position of thesafeguarding lever 17 which corresponds to the unlocked position of thelock. The trigger 15, which is configured approximately in the form ofan arc of a semicircle, forms a pressure plate 15′ on the outside of thehousing, the exterior handle of the door (this handle not beingillustrated) acting on the pressure plate. On the inside of the housing,the trigger 15 carries a pin-like drive protrusion 22 for interactionwith the free end of the lever arm 13″ of the V-shaped lever 13.

Also mounted about the pin 18 is an actuating lever 23, which has aclearance on one side in relation to the safeguarding lever 17 and, in amanner which is not illustrated more specifically, is coupled to a lockcylinder (not shown).

Adjacent to the point of articulation for the trigger 15, this point ofarticulation being formed by the pin 16, the safeguarding lever 17 formsa control rib 24 which runs at an obtuse angle and is intended forinteracting with a control cam 25 of a switching member 26. Thisswitching member is configured as a lever, and in particular an angledlever and is mounted about a pin 27 at one end 28 of the double-armedtransmission lever 14. The latter is mounted in a rotatable manner aboutthe rotary-latch spindle 11. The interior handle 30 acts at the otherend 29.

The control cam 25 is located on the first arm 26′ of the switchingmember 26. The second arm forms a control protrusion 26″ for interactingwith the lever 13 or the lever arm 13″ thereof. The switching member 26is forced in the counterclockwise direction by a torsion spring 31, sothat the control cam 25 is biased to support itself on the control rib24. Opposite the control cam 25, the first arm 26′ carries a driveprotrusion 32 for interacting with a control curve 33 of a controlmember 34. The latter is mounted, above the rotary-latch spindle 11,about an articulation pin 35 of the housing base plate 3. A worm-wheelsegment 36 is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the controlmember 34. This segment meshes with a worm 37 which, for its part, canbe driven by a second actuating motor 38. The latter is also a drive,the direction of rotation of which can be switched over, and whichinteracts with the non-blocking worm drive 36, 37.

Functioning is as follows:

As far as the exterior actuation is concerned, you are referred, inparticular, to FIGS. 2-7. FIGS. 1 to 3 illustrate the position of thelock 1 with the door having been closed by being pulled shut. Theexterior handle is unlocked and unactuated. It can be further gatheredfrom FIG. 3 that the safeguarding lever 17 has been pivoted, by thefirst actuating motor 21, into a position which corresponds to theunlocked position. On account of this position, the pin 16 assumes acorresponding position. Furthermore, the lever arm 13″ of the lever 13,which acts on the catch 9, extends in the pivoting path of the driveprotrusion 22 of the trigger 15. From this unlocked position of the lock1, the door can be opened. The exterior handle (not illustrated) can beactuated for this purpose. It acts on the trigger 15 in the arrowdirection according to FIG. 4. This trigger pivots about its pin 16 ofthe safeguarding lever 17. The drive protrusion 22 here acts on thelever 13 in accordance with the arrow direction in FIG. 4, the lever,for its part, striking against the drive pin 12 of the catch 9 andtriggering the latter. The rotary latch 10 is thus released for pivotingin the opening direction, so that the mating locking part 7 isdisengaged from the rotary latch 10.

If the door is closed and, for example via radio control incorporated inthe key, the locked position of the lock is desired, then the firstactuating motor 21 transfers the safeguarding lever 17, by means of theworm drive 19/20, into the position which corresponds to the lockedposition. This means that it pivots in accordance with the arrowdirection in FIG. 5. This is accompanied by displacement of the point ofrotation 16 for the trigger 15, see FIG. 5. If the trigger 15 is thenforced in the arrow direction by means of the exterior handle, theposition according to FIG. 6 is established. It can be gathered fromthis that the drive protrusion 22 runs along on the free end of thelever arm 13″ of the lever 13 without triggering the catch 9. This meansthat the trigger 15 is inactive. The motor-vehicle door thus cannot beopened.

In order to open the motor-vehicle door, the unlocked position of thesafeguarding lever 17 has to be brought about. If, however, prior to theunlocked position of the safeguarding lever 17 being reached, thetrigger 15, as is illustrated in FIG. 7, is already actuated and thesafeguarding lever 17 is pivoted, with a time delay, into the unlockedposition via the first actuating motor 21, then the pin 16 of thetrigger 15 changes its position. This is accompanied by the driveprotrusion 22 acting on the lever 13 which, for its part, triggers thecatch 9 and thus allows the opening rotation of the rotary latch 10, seeFIG. 7.

The actuation of the lock from the inside of the door is explained withreference to FIGS. 8-17. FIG. 8 shows the relevant lock componentsinteracting with the interior handle of the door. According to FIGS. 8and 9, the motor-vehicle door is closed and in the unlocked position.The interior handle 30 has not been actuated. In this position, thetransmission lever 14 runs approximately horizontally. The switchingmember 26, which is articulated at one end 28 thereof, is supported onthe control rib 24 of the safeguarding lever 17 by way of its controlcam 25. The control protrusion 26″, which is formed by the second arm26″, extends from one shoulder of the lever 13 or of the arm 13″thereof. This means that the switching member 26 is located in itsoperative position, which allows the lock 1 to be opened from the insideof the door by means of the interior handle 30, see FIGS. 10 and 11. Thelatter illustrate that the pivoted interior handle 30 has pivoted thetransmission lever 14 in accordance with the arrow direction. Theswitching member 26 is carried along in the process, the switchingmember acting, by way of its control protrusion 26″, on the lever 13, atthe arrow-designated point, and rotating this lever in thecounterclockwise direction. This is accompanied by the catch 9 beingtriggered, so that the rotary latch 10 can be pivoted into its openposition. The control member 34 is not activated.

FIG. 12 illustrates that, when the locked position of the lock isbrought about, the second actuating motor 38 has pivoted the controlmember 34 in the arrow direction via the worm drive 36, 37. The controlcurve 33 of the control member 34 acts on the drive protrusion 32 of theswitching member 26 and pivots the latter such that the controlprotrusion, which is formed by the second arm 26″, is disengaged fromthe lever 13. It is also the case that the control cam 25 passes out ofoperative connection with the safeguarding lever 17 or the control rib24 thereof. The safeguarding lever 17 is located, according to FIG. 12,in the position which corresponds to the locked position, while theswitching member 26 assumes its inoperative position, which correspondsto the safeguarding position of the lock. This means that the lockcannot be opened by the exterior handle of the door since the trigger 15is inactive. It is also the case that actuation of the interior handle30 results in the transmission lever 14 being inactive, since theswitching-member control protrusion 26″ runs along on the lever 13 anddoes not pivot the latter, so that the catch 9 remains in engagementwith the rotary latch 10, see FIG. 13. During this movement, the driveprotrusion 32 slides along the control curve 33. The control cam 25 isinactive and, accordingly, does not cause the safeguarding lever 17 tobe displaced.

Opening of the vehicle door once the side window of the vehicle door hasbeen smashed in is thus ruled out in this safeguarding position.

It may be the case, however, that, when the vehicle is left, one or morepeople still remain in the vehicle. In order for it nevertheless to bepossible for the motor-vehicle door to be opened from the inside, thecontrol member 34 can be displaced back by virtue of the secondactuating motor 38 being energized by key-based radio actuation. Theswitching member 26 is thus released in order to be pivoted backpartially. This movement is limited by the control cam 25 beingsupported on the control rib 24. This supporting position, furthermore,corresponds to the inoperative position of the switching member 26.Opening of the door from the outside by actuation of the exterior handleis not possible since, on account of the adjusted safeguarding lever 17,the trigger 15 is inactive. Upon initial actuation of the interiorhandle 30, the safeguarding lever 17 is transferred, via the control cam25 and control rib 24, from the position according to FIG. 14 into thataccording to FIG. 15. This is possible, for example, in that, in thelocked position, the driving worm 20 assumes such an angle-of-rotationposition that a radial slot located in the worm helix allows thesafeguarding lever 17 to be pivoted from the position of FIG. 14 intothat according to FIG. 15. Following the return displacement of theinterior handle 30, the lock thus assumes the unlocked position, as isillustrated in FIG. 16. This allows the door to be opened from theoutside as well. Upon opening from the inside of the door, in contrast,it is necessary to actuate the second actuation of the interior handle30, which pivots the lever 13 via the transmission lever 14 andswitching member 26, the lever 13, for its part, disengaging the catch9, see FIG. 17.

The configuration according to the invention allows a modularconstruction of a lock. It is possible, for example, to dispense withthe second actuating motor 38 along with the associated worm drive. Thisthen does away with the double locking action. Only the locked positionis achieved. It is then always possible for the motor-vehicle door to beopened by the interior handle. The second, completion stage is selectedif the safeguarding position is desired, so that the abovedescribedconfiguration is present.

It is also possible to configure the lock such that it allows achildproof-locking position. Starting from the locked position, the lockcan indeed be displaced into the unlocked position by initial actuationof the interior handle, but a second actuation of the interior handle isinactive. This can be achieved in that, in the childproof-lockingposition, the second arm 26″ is moved past the lever 8 without pivotingthe latter. The catch 9 then thus remains in engagement with the rotarylatch 10.

It should also be mentioned that the safeguarding lever 17 is forced bytorques in the direction of the respective end position upon triggeractuation. Accordingly, the safeguarding lever remains, as intended, inits selected position.

In the unlocked position and also the safeguarding position, it isalways possible to bring about the unlocked position, via the actuatinglever 23, by means of the lock cylinder, this being accompanied by thesafeguarding lever 17 being pivoted out of its position whichcorresponds to the locked position, so that the unlocked position thenprevails. In the case of this lock-cylinder-induced unlocking, it isalso possible, as a result of the non-blocking worm drive 36, 37, forthe control member 34 to be displaced.

All features disclosed are (in themselves) pertinent to the invention.The disclosure content of the associated/attached priority documents(copy of the prior application) is hereby also included in full in thedisclosure of the application, also for the purpose of incorporatingfeatures of these documents in claims of the present application.

1-9. (canceled)
 10. Motor-vehicle door lock (1) which can be actuated bymeans of an interior handle and an exterior handle, wherein the exteriorhandle acts on a trigger (15), actuation of which triggers a catch (9),which retains a rotary latch (10), in an unlocked position of the lockand is inactive in a locked position and in a safeguarding position;wherein the interior handle (30) acts on a transmission lever (14),actuation of which triggers the catch (9) in the unlocked position andthe locked position, and is inactive in the safeguarding position;wherein the transmission lever (14) has a switching member (26) which,in the unlocked position, assumes an operative position, which allowstransmission of movement to the catch (9), and, in the locked position,and in the safeguarding position, assumes an inoperative position, whichrenders the transmission lever (14) inactive; and wherein in the lockedposition, initial actuation of the interior handle (30) switches overthe switching member (26) from the inoperative position into theoperative position, and switches over the lock (1) into the unlockedposition.
 11. Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim 10, wherein thetrigger (15) is articulated in a rotatable manner on a safeguardinglever (17) which can be pivoted, by means of a first actuating motor(21), between a position which is associated with the unlocked positionof the lock and a position which is associated with the locked positionof the lock.
 12. Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim 10, whereinthe switching member (26) is formed as a lever, in particular an angledlever, which is disposed at the end (28) of the transmission lever (14)having two arms, has a control member (34), driven by a second actuatingmotor (38), acting on one arm (26′) and has its second arm (26″) acting,in particular via a lever (13), on the catch (9).
 13. Motor-vehicle doorlock according to claim 12, wherein a control protrusion formed by thesecond arm (26″), in the operative position, acts on the lever (13) uponactuation of the interior handle, and a control cam (25), which isformed by the first arm (26′) of the switching member (26), with thecontrol member (34) disengaged in the inoperative position, acts on thesafeguarding lever (17) upon initial actuation of the interior handle(30) in order to pivot the safeguarding lever into the position which isassociated with the unlocked position and, with the control member (34)held in engagement, in order to move the control cam (25) past thesafeguarding lever (17) upon actuation of the interior handle. 14.Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim 13, wherein the control cam(25) butts against a control rib (24) of the safeguarding lever (17) inthe pivoted-back position of the control member (34), which is formed asa lever, and, with the control member (34) pivoted forward, a driveprotrusion (32) of the switching member (26) slides along a controlcurve (33) of the same.
 15. Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim12, wherein the second actuating motor (38) acts on the control member(34) by way of a non-blocking worm drive (36/37).
 16. Motor-vehicle doorlock according to claim 10, wherein the lock has a childproof-lockingposition, in which, starting from the locked position, the lock can bedisplaced into the unlocked position by initial actuation of theinterior handle (30), but second actuation of the interior handle (30)is inactive.
 17. Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim 12, whereinthe lock has a childproof-locking position, in which position the secondarm (26″) of the switching member (26) is moved past the lever (13)and/or the catch (9) upon actuation of the interior handle. 18.Motor-vehicle door lock according to claim 11, wherein the firstactuating motor (21) acts on the safeguarding lever (17) by way of aworm drive (19/20) which, in its two end positions, allows thesafeguarding lever (17) to be pivoted freely, the safeguarding leverbeing forced by torques in the direction of the respective end positionupon trigger actuation.